Chapter 60 - Talk of Destiny

Sian walked back along the road for a few moments before turning off to her left, starting into the trees. She stepped with sure footing despite the forest floor only being lit by the occasional shine of moonlight. Through the trees she could just make out a gentle crystalline blue glow in the distance. While she and Silias had been tending to Groyven, Antrandis had been with Winter. Their conversation had ranged all over, his thoughts painting pictures in Sian’s mind as Hendosphyre had conversed with him, Winter acting as a medium between the two.

Since they had secured the children one thing had become clear. They were lost, their knowledge was narrow and they did not know enough of their own time and world to make even the start of a fruitful search possible. Groyven was remarkably mature in his reasoning; he had identified and accepted that the chance of their return was slim and almost beyond hope.

Hendosphyre’s thoughts were also limited, the gryphon’s memories few and far between since the fall of the world. After the return to the surface, his masters had rarely summoned him, preferring to keep him as a last resort or as a weapon lest they draw attention to themselves. Hendosphyre had lamented that they did not understand what he was.

The gryphon had spoken highly of the twin’s mother, his last Mistress. She had bonded with him, and many a time she had summoned him during daylight hours even just for company. Hendosphyre had grown quiet when he mentioned her death and her last commands. He spoke to Winter of the daylight hours in the mountains, the deserts they had moved to. When Antrandis had asked him of the differences, from where they had come from, he had mentioned the Forge of Souls did not hang in the night sky, the moon appeared to be subtly different and that he had seen a dragon god, monumental in size. He had expressed his fear in recognising the Valkyrie, her power and purpose in the world they came from.

Winter had asked of why he had stood down when Sian had approached, why he had accepted her words. His only response was that he could feel that she had been touched by the old gods, the ancient gods that were no more. That she had fought back the wolves in the town, siding with him and dragging them off him when he was called by Groyven to return to his side. He knew from the moment that Sian touched her forehead to his that their intent was true and could be trusted. He had spoken that when they had camped in the ruins, one who could only be described as a goddess had came to him, warning him of the wolves, and that Antrandis bore her scent upon him. The children could be safely surrendered into Sian and Antrandis’s care.

Sian frowned as she walked toward the glow; the most troubling aspect of what Hendosphyre had mentioned was while she held the amulet as Groyven bathed. The gryphon had felt a double, another amulet on this world. When he was first summoned here he was disoriented and unsure until he saw Groyven kneeling before him. Hendosphyre was concerned with the dangers of meeting oneself.

“Here but not from here.” Sian said under her breath.

“We do believe those were our words, Sian of then and now.”

Sian slowed, quickly spotting Aisling as she leaned against a tree in the darkness. The goddess gestured with her hand for Sian to come closer. She waited for Sian to approach before embracing her gently.

“Good evening, our child’s chosen. We apologise for our absence, it is hard for us to walk among others.”

Sian met her eyes, unaffected by their gaze, “Well met, Aisling. It is to be expected, I am surprised, you haven’t made your presence known for nearly five years, and suddenly you are showing yourself to everyone over the last few nights. Even the gryphon.”

Aisling smiled again, raising her eyebrows apologetically, shrugging slightly, “You did look beautiful in that gown during the ceremony.”

Sian stared at her, “You were there?”

“Our dear Sian, we are everywhere…” Aisling said quietly, glancing through the trees distractedly, “Always.”

She looked back to Sian, “Our child has been conversing with the gryphon from here yet not from here. Hendosphyre, yes? We are not familiar with his kind, despite his power. To us it feels as if there are two beating hearts, not one. We do agree with his view, announcing his and the children’s presence to their doubles could prove problematic, disastrous even. They must be kept apart from their kind, or it will upset the balance of destiny.”

Aisling looked at Sian carefully, smiling in understanding, “You have already offered this to the boy.”

Sian nodded, “The boy, Groyven is already looking ahead, he recognises the difficulty of returning back to where they came from.” Sian moved a step closer to the glow ahead.

Aisling smiled, watching the movement.

She raised her hand, “There is more we need to discuss, Sian of then and now. We have need of your unique perspective of one from the world that was.”

Sian watched as time seemed to slow, the sounds of the forest drawing out until a strange clear and pure sound settled among the trees. The air, razor sharp with a fragile crystalline quality. She turned, surveying the forest around them.

“Did you?” she asked, frowning.

“Did we stop time?” the goddess glanced around, “No, but we have a fondness for this distortion, we can have hours within here and bare seconds can pass on the outside. It allows us to see details not seen by others.”

Aisling followed Sian with her eyes as she looked around, “We are sure you have noticed that cracks are forming in the Valkyrie’s shell. Things that should not be seen, but are. Things of what could be, are not. Yet.”

Sian stopped and looked at the goddess, her eyes fixed on Aisling’s with a fierce intensity, “Both Antrandis and I wish to discuss this with Lumos, we have...”

Aisling lifted her hand, “You want to attempt to convince us to relinquish our hold over Winter and allow our child to take ownership of the Valkyrie.”

Sian looked at her seriously, “Yes, she has been...”

“You can not convince us to relinquish what was never ours to begin with.” said the goddess as she started walking toward the glow, Sian following at her side a curious expression growing on her face.

“The Valkyrie’s ownership was always in his hands; we feel this word, ‘ownership’, is inappropriate, she is not a possession, though in some way, she is. He and not us, has always been her tether to this world, from the moment he was placed in her care. It was a naive and innocent mistake that we made. We were aware, but unaware of how far she was willing to go to place her master in a place of power, to do what she felt was best for him at a point of time where his leadership was in its infancy.”

She glanced at Sian, watching her reactions, “It led to us shackling her powers and restricting her movements, dominating her and forcing her to a specific purpose and role. We will not speak further without our child’s approval, we understand it is a sensitive topic for both the Valkyrie and himself.”

“But even Winter believes she is tethered to Lumos.” said Sian.

Aisling smiled, “Sian of then and now, we will ask questions of you, since you know Winter the Valkyrie of the old world. Why does she only give in to him? Why does she only show her fear and insecurities to him? Why are her eyes only for him and those he deems worthy? Why do her walls crumble at the merest breath before him, if she were tethered to another?”

Sian looked at her as they moved past a group of trees, “Because of Lumos. She grew close to Antrandis because of Lumos.”

“Are you sure of this, or are you convincing yourself, Sian of then and now? Why would we direct our own possession to have such a thinly disguised obsession with our child and your man? She forced a wall up between him and herself out of respect of a memory of you, in doing so she unknowingly deafened herself to the will of her master, creating this confusion she is experiencing.”

Sian frowned, “But Lumos restored her power.”

“We did, we had need of her powers of old to enact the kiss of the Valkyrie. As Winter was the strongest, we needed the most potent to sway the mind of your and the Stormarrow’s mother. It coincided with the reunification of your fragmented soul and the return of your memories. She begged and cried for her freedom so she could be at your and her master’s side. All we asked in return was that she remained in her role as Handmaiden and Mistress of the Temple of Lumos, nothing more.” Aisling said calmly.

Sian stepped over a branch, a frown creasing her brow, remembering when they recovered Silvast, “What is she really?”

Aisling glanced at her, “We are not sure of your insinuation. She is significantly more powerful than any of the others we recovered from the ether. But in saying so, she is also more restricted, we believed at the time that she had been forced into a role she was not made for. We were unable to break the binding holding her. It was as if it were concealed from us. We could feel it, but not see it. We pondered your question despite our inability to make her ours.”

“Could she be of the demonic realms?” asked Sian.

“We are unsure of her origin, and she is unable to recognise when she came into existence. It is somehow concealed from her. We are aware of what you refer to and it is a thought we once pondered, but we grew distracted. It is up to Antrandis, her master and tether to discover her truth.”

They stood at the edge of a clearing, the origin of the soft blue light before them. The whole hollow among the trees was bathed in the light that seemed to emanate from the air itself. Antrandis was sitting cross legged and Winter was laying on her side, eyes closed, her head cradled in his hands and his lap, his head bowed over hers with his face deep in concentration. Aisling’s distortion made the air shimmer, the blue glow giving the sensation that the space was continually expanding. Aisling stepped out and walked up to Antrandis and Winter, she crouched, looking at them carefully with curious intent. She smiled, tilting her head as she resettled a stray hair on his head.

“There is something you still wish to discuss before we leave.” Aisling said while letting one of Winter’s feathers slip through her fingers.

“We have Xiana.” Sian said.

Aisling nodded slowly as she gently ran her hand along Winter’s wing, “Did she prove her worth?”

Sian stared at her, “Her worth? Did you not task Antrandis to bring her to the temple?”

Aisling smiled absently, “Meeting her is of no consequence, we said such to stay his hand. An audience we will give, but she is of no worth to us.” the Goddess said without emotion.

Sian looked at her from the corner of her eye, “Aisling, what is happening?”

“Telios is faltering, he has declined to the point of being unable to resurrect his own child if she falls, hence the reason to stay our child’s hand.” Aisling said.

“Xiana is mortal? Telios is dying?” asked Sian, crouching beside her.

“In a sense of it, yes. For our kind, for what made us the way we are. We, the three have the power to grant him a mortal life in return for the unique link to his power, no matter how depleted. Or he can choose to wilt until he ceases to exist, here one moment, dust the next. We will still receive the link to his extinguished power, whatever his decision.” Aisling said with a strangely satisfied smile.

She met Sian’s eyes, “It can happen to any of us, except the most powerful. Some of us grow in power, while most decline. Some have been resourceful enough to replenish what they had, and others are simply unable to. Telios is regrettably unable to.”

“Xiana will die?” asked Sian.

“Yes, we doubt of old age, she is of no worth to the three. Though, if he sees worth in her continued existence then something may be arranged.” Aisling looked at Sian intently, “Is she of worth to you, Sian of then and now? Does she have value to remain as she is, the eyes and Dark Empress of Dekkersmann, though no longer allied to those against you, but instead an ally with eyes, ears and fingers that reach far and wide?”

Sian looked at Aisling shrewdly, “Are you trying to convince me?”

“No, not at all.” Aisling laughed gently, “Telios may reach out to our child, to sway his thoughts. To have him vouch for her in our stead. He understands that his own worth is limited, and all he can ask for is a simple mercy from us.”

Sian stood, “A simple mercy.” she echoed before looking back to Aisling, “If she and Telios are of no real worth to the three, what of Toth?”

“The absent god? Second to the three? It is an entertaining thought. He values the view of our child, despite his distance. If our child vouches for her, he may consider as he has in the past. Though, our dear Sian, it may be better for her to avoid that possibility, death may be a better alternative. Toth can be a cruel master, his will is a mystery even to the three.” she looked at Sian, tilting her head, her eyes looking through her.

“I believe you are vouching for Xiana, Sian. I will present your request to Toth in your stead.”

Sian nodded, “Despite her deficiencies, Xiana has proven useful in the past.”

Aisling looked at her, “Then her fate will be the will of Toth.”

“Is that not why you presented yourself here in the forest, Lady Aisling?” asked Sian.

Aisling smiled, tilting her head to Sian, “That is between you and I, Sian of then and now. The appearance of those from here yet not here has saved the child of Telios, and in doing so, destiny’s course has almost been corrected. Fate and its strands are a fickle thing, Sian of Darkfall.”

The goddess looked down at Antrandis, “With his knowledge or not, our child is working on the final aspect of correcting the path right at this moment. While his outcome is hidden from my sight, I trust the result of his future actions, Sian of Darkfall.”

She turned, her strange eyes of the universe still on Sian. She nodded slightly, suddenly disappearing as time for Sian returned to normal. The dilation no longer holding sway over the forest. Sian looked down to Antrandis and Winter as they were entwined in the sleep-scape. She considered the words of the goddess as she knelt behind Antrandis, slowly sliding her arms around his chest from behind, pressing herself against his back and resting her head on his shoulder. Aisling’s purpose was clear, ensuring Winter’s restoration and the continued survival of Xiana were the keys to correcting the path of destiny and the fates, upset by the arrival of the twins.

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